Tomb Raider Writer Sees Heroines Scrutinized In Video Games

In an interview with Kill Screen Daily, Tomb Raider scribe Rhianna Pratchett admits there is a bit of a double standard between heroes and heroines in video games.

Pratchett believes that Lara Croft is treated differently than Uncharted adventurer Nathan Drake. "Lara Croft gets a lot more scrutiny than Nathan Drake does, as a female," said Pratchett, whose father is fantasy author Terry Pratchett. "Nobody talks about how well Nathan Drake is representing men, or male characters in games."

Whenever the topic comes up for more female protagonists, Pratchett expands that conversation, saying there should be, "a need for characters of different ethnicities, ages, sexual orientation, ability, et cetera."

In bringing Lara Croft to life, Pratchett's main goal was to create a human story, and although Croft is a fighting machine, she also has a feminine side. "I didn't want to just make Lara a male character with boobs," added Pratchett.

With news that some publishers were hesitant over having a woman headline Remember Me, it's surprising that such an issue even exists in the diverse gaming universe. Maybe there are mysteries that even Lara Croft can't solve.